Democratic Split Widens on Afghan Escalation

As Some Predict 'Revolt' Over Troop Hike, Others Back McChrystal's Call

The top Democrat Congressmen have largely come off the fence on the question of the Afghan escalation, and it seems that the party’s leadership is split roughly in half between supporting and opposing General Stanley McChrystal’s call for more troops.

Several of the top Congressmen, including House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, have become outspoken advocates of McChrystal’s call for 60,000 additional troops.

Meanwhile, others including House Appropriation Committee Chairman David Obey have been cautioning that if President Obama attempts to hive General McChrystal the huge build-up he wants, he could be facing a “revolt” and Congress could try to cut off funds for the escalation.

Yet so long as the Democrats are so split, this is probably a very empty threat. The Republican opposition is, with only a handful of notable exceptions, in favor of the McChrystal plan, and it would take a vast majority of the Democrats to actually block the funds successfully, a majority which at the moment doesn’t appear to exist.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.